A Day at MCM Comic Con London and Why I Love It So Much

Pirates of the Caribbean or Star Tours t-shirt? Star Wars Rebel pilot backpack or classic Star Wars courier bag? Slip on Star Wars scene Vans or lace up Stormtrooper Vans? That last dilemma was easily solved as I couldn’t and still can’t locate that particular pair of Vans – just why do things go missing so often at home and where do they go? Fellow comic con attendees will recognise these kind of decisions, because even though the venue will be full of people with eye catching slaved over cosplay designs, it’s also very important I choose to wear the right thing. You never know, there could be another fan of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland Paris or another Disney Park at the con, and it also ties in with the release of the latest film on the ongoing series. The backpack also got the nod in case you were wondering. No point agonising over which is the perfect t-shirt just to have a big strap covering the design.

I usually go with my son and sometimes my wife if she’s not working, but with both of them away visiting relatives for half term, I took a friend to his very first comic con experience at the Excel, for MCM Comic Con London. On a really hot day it was thankfully pretty cool inside the venue, never more of a relief than when we had to queue for 20 minutes until general entry opened and we were constantly told to shuffle up. Personal space be damned. Once inside there’s the usual sensory overload as I try to decide to which of the 17 things that has caught me eye to head towards first.

Much f it essentially like a huge market, with rows and rows of stands selling a plethora of anime, film, comic, and video game related merchandise. For someone that lives in a small town in Hertfordshire it’s one of the few opportunities I get each year to feast my eyes on such wears, and while I may not want to buy all that is on offer, I’m always amazed at the skill and effort that has gone into producing the hand made items, and the factory produced ones too, but to less an extent. It’s also the only time I get to see so many different One Piece (my favourite anime show) items, and a leather wallet with Luffy on the front was the first thing on my maybe list. If we are talking effort, then it’s the incredible cosplay creations that take center stage. The amount of work that goes into some of these is insane, and way beyond what my artistically challenged mind can comprehend. I don’t recognise the characters portrayed in a lot of them, being unfamiliar with a lot of anime and almost the entire video games world, but that doesn’t stop me marveling at how stunning they look. Some of these are beyond film accurate and look better than what we see on the big screen. Multiple tails seemed to be a bit of a theme this year – no idea why, but they looked cute.

Though we hadn’t booked any photo opportunities, we walked past KJ Apa who plays Archie in Riverdale, the original Hulk Lou Ferrigno, Verne Troyer of Austin Powers fame and Darth Vader himself, David Prowse, and many more. I’ve met David before, and none of the others on offer tempted me enough to pay and queue to meet them, but having these opportunities is always great. At last year’s Star Wars Celebration in the same building I, along with my son and wife, met Mark Hamill – a surreal dream come true.

Throughout my life I’ve always loved to submerge myself in fandoms of various types; Pro wrestling, Star Wars, comics, Disneyland Paris and a variety of TV shows to name but a few. MCM Comic Con gives me the opportunity to be amongst like minded people, all celebrating our love and appreciation for these art forms, with unashamed exuberance. In a world that every day seems to be more full of hate and evil, for those 5 hours spent at at MCM Comic Con I can escape all that, and allow myself to be consumed by all the fantasy and fun. The people are always so friendly, and I often find myself chatting to complete strangers like I’ve known them for years. When asking to have photos with people in their great costumes I’ve never had anything but positive and enthusiastic responses, and so have captured some fab photos over the years. To all those I had photos with yesterday, and at events in the past, thank you.

On the way out I asked my friend if he’d consider coming in costume next time. Of course what I was really saying is I REALLY REALLY WANT TO COME IN MY JEDI COSTUME BUT I’M TOO NERVOUS TO DO IT ON MY OWN, PLEASE SAY YES AND I’LL BE YOUR BEST FRIEND FOREVER! I’ll optimistically put him down as a maybe, but my son and wife have agreed, and thus in October Jedi Steve will be making his MCM Comic Con debut. That’s unless I figure something else out by then, and after finally starting to watch Cowboy Bebop after years of wanting to, I’m thinking spike would be awesome to cosplay as.

I never found that One Piece wallet again, but maybe all things really do happen for a reason, as on the very last stand I visited I found and bought this incredible Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles wallet, which I much prefer. AWESOME!